Vancouver’s parking cheapest among big five Canadian cities

Vancouver may be an expensive place to park, but it’s also the cheapest among the big five Canadian cities, according to a survey released Monday by Colliers International.

The survey, called Colliers International’s 10th Annual Parking Rate Survey, concludes that Canadian drivers continue to feel the pinch when pulling into the parking lot, as parking rates across the country kept rising over the past year.

The median monthly parking rate reached $224.10 while the median daily rate rose to $14.83, up two per cent from last year but far less than the 9.9-per-cent increase experienced during the 2008-09 period.

However, the survey also found that Vancouver ranked fifth in parking fees among 12 major Canadian cities, but below the other big four: Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Edmonton.

Calgary maintained its top rank as the priciest city to park with a median unreserved monthly parking fee of $453.38. Calgary was also the only one in Canada to make it into the global list of the priciest cities to park, ranking 14th.

By Calgary’s measure, Vancouver monthly fees appeared quite cheap at $266.81. Toronto came in at $336.25 and the national average was $224.10.

Victoria came in at an even $180, while the cheapest in the country was Kitchener-Waterloo, Ont. at $116.94.

“Parking garages are one of the only commercial real estate sub-sectors that seemed to remain stable even during an economic turmoil,” Wayne Duong, director of research with Colliers International in Canada, said in a statement.

“As the economic environment continues to improve both in terms of business activity and consumer confidence, Colliers anticipates these will create upwards pressure on monthly and daily parking rates respectively. Additionally, the limited supply of only 10 new parking garages with 1,800 spots added over the next 24 months will contribute to the expected rate increases.”

Colliers also expects the economic recovering, a stronger labour market and renewed office leasing activity as contributing to higher rates.

Globally, London, U.K., was ranked the most expensive city in the world to park, with a $933 US median price for a monthly spot. Hong Kong (744.72 US), Tokyo (U$654 US), Zurich ($605.64 US ) and Sydney ($591.28 US ) completed the group of top five most expensive cities.